


change.

by ruzekhalstead



Series: halstead & upton one-shots. [9]
Category: Chicago PD (TV)
Genre: F/M, One Chicago (Chicago Franchise), Upstead
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-28
Updated: 2020-07-28
Packaged: 2021-03-05 22:35:23
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25562950
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ruzekhalstead/pseuds/ruzekhalstead
Summary: “jay, you ride with kim. you guys are going to be partners for a while.”-prompt: jay recovers from his gun-shot wound & is back to full duty. hailey requests a new partner & he has no idea why.
Relationships: Jay Halstead & Hailey Upton, Jay Halstead/Hailey Upton
Series: halstead & upton one-shots. [9]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1634428
Comments: 2
Kudos: 35





	change.

it’s on jay’s first day back to full duty that he notices a change in his partner, hailey.

when he brings her a coffee in the morning (smiling like an idiot because he’s finally off desk duty), she takes it with a quiet thank you and avoids eye contact. he finds it odd but doesn’t read into it too much because he’s far too excited. he notices later on throughout the day, she buries herself in her paperwork and replies in one-word answers. whenever someone needs to make a stop or check in with a confidential informant, she jumps at the opportunity to go and leave him behind.

he’s starting to get annoyed.

then a case jumps off and sergeant voight assigns tasks, like he always does. jay has his coat in hand, eyes locked on hailey, ready to hit the streets just like before.

“jay, you ride with kim. you guys are going to be partners for a while.”

jay nearly drops his phone in surprise. he looks up at hank with a confused and irritated expression and he only shrugs and makes his way back into his office. he then looks at hailey, who once again evades his eyes and quickly goes for the stairs with vanessa. kim waits at the stairs, wielding a guilty expression.

he shoots kim a small smile. It’s nothing against kim; she’s a great teammate and he trusts her with his life, but she isn’t _his_ partner. it just isn’t the same. “just give me a second,” he says to her and makes his way into voight’s office.

hank just looks at him as he enters, as if he was expecting this.

“sarge, what the hell?’

admittedly, it isn’t the best way to start a conversation with his superior, but he’s flustered and annoyed.

he softens his gaze and continues. “sorry. i just—what the hell?” he tries again. “is this my punishment for going off book? i know i messed up, i get it; but hailey and i are good together, why split us up?”

“i agree; you two are good together,” hank replies vaguely.

jay is more confused than ever.

“then what am i missing?” he asks, exasperated.

hank’s face still looks impassively calm. “hailey requested a different partner.”

it was as if the ground gave out beneath him.

he was expecting anything and everything, except that.

why would hailey give him up? especially without talking to him first; he just couldn’t understand. there had been absolutely no signs leading up to this, aside from her off standish behaviour today.

“oh,” jay breathes. he has no idea what else to say. voight studies him in silence. “alright then.”

“you didn’t know,” voight adds.

jay focuses on making his facial expression as stoic as possible. “no, i didn’t.”

“sounds like you two need to talk,” voight expands. his eyes are burning holes into jay and he’s starting to feel uncomfortable. “listen jay,” he clears his throat and sits up straighter in his seat. “i’m not going to lecture you; i’ve done that already. but cases involving partners aren’t like any other,” he purses his lips, “hailey didn’t tell me what you were up to, even when i pressed. she was loyal to you, her partner. but you lied to her and then you were gone, and she struggled; strong as she is, she struggled.”

as jay listens to the hard truths, a heavy cloud brews above his figure.

he’s messed up so bad with hailey and he had no idea.

she left him without even talking to him about it; he can’t get that out of his mind.

voight doesn’t expect a response, nor does he give him time for one.

“stick with kim today and deal with hailey after shift. okay?”

jay nods numbly. “yeah. thanks, sarge.”

as jay makes his way over to a patient kim, he feels an indescribably anger at not seeing his blonde partner.

* * *

hailey effectively avoids Jay for the remainder of the day. she’s kept busy and isn’t stuck at her desk for long and she notices jay avoids her just as much since voight announced the changes. she kept telling herself it was fine, but god, it was so far from fine. he was her person and now she can’t even look at him.

when their day finally comes to an end, it’s well into the night. they’re exhausted and already expected to be back within a few hours, but jay still isn’t satisfied with how they’re ending. hailey still hadn’t explained to him why she decided to request a new partner, nor did she talk to him at all for that matter.

he was going to change that.

he follows hailey to her jeep and she’s so exhausted, she doesn’t even notice.

“hailey,” he calls out as she opens her driver side door.

jay watches her freeze for a millisecond before she turns to face him. “jay, i’m tired; not now, please.”

“you owe me at least an explana—”

hailey whips around to face him with a vengeance. “i don’t owe you anything, jay!” she hisses heatedly.

jay snaps.

“the hell you don’t!” he yells back ferociously, slamming his hand on her door to close it forcefully. she stares at the door for a moment before turning back to him, her blue eyes wild and angry. “hailey, what the hell? why wouldn’t you at least give me a heads up you were planning on leaving me, your partner?”

“i left you?” hailey snaps in response. “don’t make this about you, jay. i was the one who was lied to. i was the one who had to cover for you and lie to voight. i was the one who went _hours_ without knowing where you were, if you were okay or even alive.”

jay tries to control his anger and sympathize with her. “hailey, i’m sorry i did that. but are you really just going to abandon me as a partner?”

“don't you get it?” she yells, exasperated. “i can’t trust you anymore, jay!”

he goes silent.

“you lied to me and you went off and got yourself hurt and i can’t be your partner if you’re going to do this kind of stuff without even consulting me! it's not even the first time, jay. you can’t keep doing that to me.”

jay didn’t even know what to say.

“i’m doing this for me. because i can’t watch you be an absolute _idiot_ and get yourself hurt again.”

jay was just absolutely done; he needed everything to go back to normal.

“hailey, how do Ii ix this?” he begs. “i need everything to go back to normal.”

hailey runs her hands through her blonde hair in frustration. “things can’t go back to normal, jay! things are different now and i can’t just—”

“can’t what?” jay snaps angrily.

“i can’t just pretend i haven’t realized my feelings for you!”

jay stops.

“what?”

hailey’s eyes widen.

“shit,” she swears quietly. “i need to go.”

she tries to open her suv door again, but jay holds his hand against it. “hailey,” he breathes gently.

“i didn’t know what was going to happen to you,” she admits, surrendering her attempt to escape and avoiding eye contact. “i didn’t even know if you were going to make it. and when i was sitting in that waiting room, i realized… i think i might love you.”

jay isn’t sure how to react; this whole conversation had been a rollercoaster.

hailey notices his hesitation and pales. “you don’t have to say anything. shit; this is why i didn’t say anything in the hospital room.”

jay opens his mouth to speak. hailey beats him to it; she’s mortified and dying to escape.

“it's okay, jay; this is why i need space. it's okay, i'll get over it,” she takes a deep breath and finally meets his eyes. “i'll get over it and be fine.”

jay's green eyes lock on hers and hold her gaze. “hailey, will you shut up and let me speak?”

hailey stares at him in bewilderment and surprise.

“why do you think you asking for a new partner is so difficult for me? i try so hard to pretend there’s nothing there because workplace relationships have been absolutely awful for me,” he explains, watching her surprise grow. “and it’s fucking terrifying to feel something for your partner because so many things could go wrong. but i do; i feel something for you.”

jay was never good at expressing his feelings and this was no different.

he takes a deep breath and says, “i think i’m falling in love with you.”

a slow, shy grin spread across hailey's facial features. “well, aren’t we just a giant mess.”

“so, what does this mean for us?” he asks, inching closer.

hailey watches his movements carefully. “i don’t know,” she answers honestly, “but i really, really want to find out.”

“hailey upton, will you be my partner again?” jay asks hopefully, a soft smile on his lips. his smile matched his soft eyes as they stared at hailey with adoration.

the blonde detective nods, letting out a loud laugh. “i would love nothing more, jay halstead.”

**Author's Note:**

> lmao sorry if this sucked
> 
> lowkey love fighting upstead.. THE TENSION
> 
> i have a bunch of one-shots lined up, i just have to finish writing them!!!
> 
> also, be sure to follow me on tumblr!! ruzek-halstead


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